Figures show Irish continuing to borrow at record levels
31/01/2006 - 12:10:16Irish people are continuing to borrow at record levels, according to figures published today by the Central Bank.
In its latest monthly bulletin, the bank said "private-sector credit" increased by €6bn in December of last year, the highest monthly rise on record.
This brought the annual increase for 2005 to €59bn, compared to an overall rise of €37bn in 2004.
The massive increases are being driven by demand for residential mortgages, which rose by €3.5bn in December and by €21.1bn during 2005 as a whole.
Central Bank spokesman Neil Whorisky said he believed the rises in personal debt, coupled with spiralling house prices and huge levels of construction, were unsustainably large and were creating an increasing risk of a "sharp correction" in the housing market.
